Annan: US policy toward Iraq goes beyond UN policy
Iraq-UN, Politics, 12/16/1998

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan indicated that the US policy towards Iraq is different from that of the United Nations.

In a press conference held Monday at UN headquarters in New York, Annan said "There are areas where Washington's policies diverge from those of the United Nations, and I think one case in point is that of Iraq, where the Council has made it clear that we should disarm Iraq, and the moment we get the indication from the inspectors, from Mr. Butler, that Iraq has been disarmed, sanctions will be lifted. American policy goes beyond that."

He supported the idea of a comprehensive review of the sanctions imposed on Iraq, saying, " I think the Council itself would want to know, after eight years of sanctions, where it stands, what has been achieved, what needs to be done, and within what reasonable time frame it can be done. So, obviously, the Council will have to take a decision."

Annan stated that he sees the review "as being in line with the Council's own resolutions. The Council's resolutions are clear, and the Council must implement its own resolutions. Under the resolutions, once Iraq has disarmed, the sanctions would be lifted. The fact that there may be a conflict in the Council, because one or two members may disagree, does not mean that the Council should not move ahead and do what it has promised to do in its own resolution."

Concerning the report made by UNSCOM chairman Richard Butler, Annan said, "Mr. Butler has indicated that his assessment will be based on the overall operation, and not on this or that incident. "

Previous Stories:
  US: Iraq has blocked at least three inspections   (12/15/1998)
  UNSCOM resumes surprise inspections in Iraq   (12/14/1998)
  Baghdad prevents inspections at Baath party headquarters   (12/11/1998)

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search